Draft gear



H. E. TUCKER DRAFT GEAR Oct. 13', 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 30, 1951 INVENTOR.

1 BY. t v

Oct. 13, 1953 H. E. TUCKER I 2,655,270

' I DRAFT GEAR I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 30, 1951 Mafi /a t; (5 7 Patented Oct. 13, 1953 DRAFT GEAR Herbert E. Tucker, Chicago, 111., assignor to Cardwell Westinghouse Company, a corporation of Delaware Application April 30, 1951, Serial No. 223,747

Claims. 1

This invention relates to railway draft gears of the type having resilient elements made of rubber blocks on a mounting or supporting plate of steel. In certain prior art types, the rubber is in the form of oval links or bars, rectangular in cross section, secured on opposite sides of a steel plate. A number of such resilient elements are assembled in a group with alternate spacer plates, which serve as inactive elements, and follower blocks are provided at the ends of the group.

Under draft and bufi stresses, the rubber links are compressed, and likewise the air surrounded by them, some of which air is expressed past the spacer plates. Upon release, the rubber expands, creating a partial vacuum, which is filled by air entering past the spacer plates. That entering air is generally laden with dust and dirt, which gets between the working surfaces and causes wear.

Furthermore, there is nothing to prevent overcompression of the rubber blocks.

The principal object of this invention is to prevent those difficulties with former devices.

Generally speaking, this is accomplished by making the rubber in separate bars arranged alongside and spaced from each other by open areas, and providing limiting means to prevent over-compression.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan section showing a cushion unit or draft gear embodying this invention within the conventional draft gear pocket between'the side sills of a car;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the cushion unit surrounded by a draft yoke;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a cushion unit;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of one of the resilient elements;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the spacer plates; and

Fig. 6 is a cross section on the line 66 of Fi 4.

In Fig. 1, a cushion unit or draft gear In embodying this invention is shown within a conventional draft gear pocket ll between draft sills l2 and surrounded by a draft yoke l3, which is connected to the coupler shank M by a key I5.

Each cushion unit In includes follower blocks I6 and I! at opposite ends of a group of resilient elements, generally indicated by l8 and shown in perspective in Fig. 4, alternating with spacer plates l9 and shown in perspective in Fig. 5.

Each resilient element [8 includes a relatively incompressible plate 20, preferably of steel, provided with rows of aligned spaced openings 2| to receive plugs 22 by which oppositely arranged bars 23 overlapping the openings 2| are connected together. The bars and plugs are pref-v erably made of resilient material, such as a rubber composition of suitable durometer hardness-for example, 58 to 62. The bars and plugs are vulcanized together, and may also be vulcanized to the plate 20.

The spacer plates l9 are provided at the ends with oppositely directed marginal flanges 24 having notches 25 and projections 26, which are somewhat complemental and serve to interlock the several spacer plates, as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3, and thus hold them in alignment.

The flanges 24 are of sufficient dimensions with respect to the blocks 23 to prevent the latter from being over compressed, and the notches 25 and plugs 26 afford suificient clearance to let the flanges 24 serve as stop limits for compression or closing of the draft gear.

The followers iii are provided with projections 21, and the followers l1 are provided with notches 28, which cooperate with corresponding notches 25 and projections 26 on the separator plates.

The followers are provided with central bosses 29 having openings 30. The spacer plates are provided with bosses 3| having openings 32, and the plates 20 are provided with openings 33. The several openings 30, 3! and 33 receive a bolt 34 equipped with a nut 35 and lead washer 36 by means of which the cushioning unit may be secured together as a unit, held in alignment, and put under pre-compression. The lead washer will yield and allow the gear to fill the pocket.

In one form that has been satisfactory, the plates 20 are 11%" x 8 /8" provided with seven rows of openings 2|, and the overall depth of the mating bars 23 is 1 The cushion unit is made up of two followers, seven resilient elements alternating with six spacers, and one bolt, nut and washer.

In one form that has been found satisfactory in practice, the spacers are of drop-forged steel with the webs 1 5'" thick; the bosses thick and corresponding in length to the effective length of the flanges 24, which are A thick. Thus, the bosses and flanges present ample metal to take the shocks that would otherwise result in over compression.

The projections 25 and 26 are arranged alternately in opposite flanges of the spacer plates, thereby making each flange common to all as- The flanges 24 on the spacers, making metal to metal contact, afford a limit to the compression of the rubber blocks. They also afford a wear surface for contact with the sills and prevent gouging and distortion.

The assembly shown in Fig. 3 makes a convenient unit as a draft gear to be inserted in a yoke and assembled in the draft gear pocket. is readily assembled in a standard pocket with standard attachments.

Im l. .A draft gear including a series of resilient elements made of a mounting plate and rubber blocks at each side thereof, said resilient elements alternating with spacer plates having normally spaced apart aligned marginal flanges and interlocking means associated with said flanges and including interengaging notches and projections to interlock said spacer plates and hold them in alignment.

2. A draft gear including a series of resilient elements madeof a mounting plate and rubber blocks at each side thereof, said resilient element alternating with spacer plates having laterally extending .aligned marginal flanges, the opposed edges of adjacent flanges normally being spaced apart but movable into engagement to limit the compression of the rubber blocks, and means including inter-engaging notches and projections on said flanges to interlock said spacer plates and hold them in alignment.

3. A draft gear including a group of mounting plates bearing rubber blocks at each side and separated by spacer plates between adjacent-rubber blocks, and a follower for each end of said group, central fastening means passing through said group and followers, and marginal means to hold the spaced plates andfollowers in alignment and against rotation on the central fastening means comprising interengaging projections and notches.

4. A draft gear including a series of resilient elements made of a mounting plate and rubber blocks at each side thereof, said resilient elements alternating with spacer plates having laterally extending aligned marginal flanges, the opposed edges of adjacent flanges normally being spaced apart but movable into engagement to limit the compression of the blocks, and means to interlock said spacer plates and hold them in alignment', said interlocking means including interengaging projections and notches on said opposed edges of the adjacentmarginalfianges, the notches being sufiicientlydeep so that the bottoms thereof clear the interengaging projections when the opposed edges of said adjacent flanges have moved into engagement to limit compression of the resilient elements.

5. A draft gear including a group of mounting plates bearing rubber blocks at each side-thereof and separated by spacer plates between adjacent rubber blocks, a follower for each end of said group, central fastening means passing through said group and followers, means for limiting the compression of said rubber blocks comprising marginal flanges extending laterally from each of the spacer plates, said flanges being aligned with each other with their adjacent edges normally spaced apart but movable into engagement when the rubber blocks have been compressed a predetermined amount, and aligning means for holding the spacer plates and followers in alignment, said aligning means comprising interen gaged projections and notches associated with said flanges.

HERBERT E. TUCKER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PA-I 'ENTIS Number Name Date 2,032,100 Spencer Feb. 25, 1936 2,187,156 Johnson Jan. 16, 1940 2,535,197 Dath Dec. '26, 1950 2,559,743 Williams July 10, 1951 

